Springtime 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Chap.Q.K^&pyright No 

»att.N3L 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 




" WHO'LL BUY ? " 



Meyer von Bremen. 



Springtime Flowers 



EASY LESSONS IN BOTANY 



MAE RUTH NORCROSS 



WITH ILLUSTRATIONS 




SILVER, BURDETT & COMPANY 
NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO 

L ■ 



5891 O 

"'Wl COPIES ft(t£i«£0 

OCT 9 1900 

C*tyngfit wtry 
S£C<*D COPV. 

OHWed In 

OKOm«V4S<ON, 

OCT 27 1900 



Copyright, 1900, 
By Silver, Burdett & Company 






TO 

MY LITTLE SISTER 

EVA C. NORCROSS 

THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY 

BeMcatefc 



Your voiceless lips, O flowers, are living preachers, 

Each cup a pulpit, each leaf a book, 
Supplying to my fancy numerous teachers 

From loveliest nook. 

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 



PREFACE 

""HIS little book is presented to the public in the hope 
that it will fill a need such as the writer, in her own 
experience in both the home circle and the schoolroom, 
has found unsupplied. 

Children all love flowers, and if their natural interest can 
be cultivated by the stimulus of a little knowledge, this love 
may be largely increased. This volume is designed as a 
beginning in the study of a science which in later years 
becomes both interesting and profitable, and the lessons 
have been prepared in as simple a form as possible. 

Only flowers well known throughout our country have 
been used as illustrations, and it is believed that, by analyz- 
ing them, as did the little people in our story, children will 
begin to notice almost unconsciously the details of each new 
plant brought to their attention. 

If this book is the means of helping the busy teacher 
or mother to awaken in her young people an interest in 
botany, the aim of the writer will be accomplished. 

Mae Ruth Norcross. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I. How It All Came About . . . . . . . .11 

II. Leaf Buds — Baby Leaves ........ 14 

III. A Rainy Morning's Work — Roots . . . . . .20 

IV. Stems and Leaves . . . . . . . . . -27 

V. Parts of Flower — Arbutus . . . . . . -33 

VI. Saxifrage — Bloodroot — Partridge Berry . . . . -43 

VII. Gold Thread — Dogtooth Violet — Leaves . . . . .49 

VIII. Preparing Specimens — Anemone — Liverwort . . . -54 

IX. Violets ............ 60 

X. Dandelions — Immortelles — Spring Beauty — Marsh Marigolds . 65 
XL Buttercups . . . . . . . . . . .72 

XII. Ground Pink — Ram's Head — Bluets — Twin Flower . . .78 

XIII. Apple Blossoms — Wild Geranium — Blue-eyed Grass — Columbine. 82 

XIV. Jack-in-the-Pulpit — Wild Lady's Slipper 86 

Glossary 89 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



CHAPTER I. 



HOW IT ALL CAME ABOUT 




THE Burtons had always lived in 
town, and, except for the short visit 
paid to Grandpa each summer, the 
country was to the little people an 
unknown paradise, filled with Nat- 
re's beautiful creations, which far ex- 
iled in their opinion any of the splen- 
ie city. 
One winter, however, there had been much 
illness in the family, and Mamma Burton looked pale and 
tired from her long work of nursing, which, careful and pa- 
tient though it had been, failed to bring the roses back to 
the cheeks of her little flock. The old family doctor finally 
decided that nothing less than a complete change of air would 
bring- about the desired result. So it was at once decided 
that, though early in April, there could be no more delightful 
place than Grandpa Allen's farm, and preparations for depart- 
ure were commenced forthwith. 



12 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

Mamma laughingly declared that the old adage about 
anticipation was based on truth, for the bustle and pleasure 
of getting ready for the trip did much more towards bringing 
about a cure than all the bitter medicine which Dr. Carlton 
had prescribed. 

At last all was ready, and, despite the pale faces, it was a 
merry party that Papa Burton escorted to the station one 
April morning to take the train for Pleasantville. 

First came Mamma, who, aside from her own desire to be 
again in her childhood's home, was sharing in the enthusiasm 
of her little folks. Anna, the eldest child, was a very studi- 
ous little maid of twelve, whose demure, careful ways made 
her a great help to Mamma, and won for her from her father 
the pet name, " Little Mother." Charley was a merry, mis- 
chievous boy of ten, who, however, shared with Anna a great 
fondness for books. And last, but not least, was Baby May, 
a golden-haired little fairy who for three years had been the 
pet of the family. 

As they rode along, all were intent upon watching the 
changing landscape, which seemed to be running away from 
them ; and even May began to strain her eyes, long before- 
hand, for a glimpse of " Danpa's house," which they knew 
contained a hearty welcome for them all. When at last they 
reached Pleasantville and saw Grandpa and his hired man 
waiting to help them into the spring wagon, even demure 
little Anna fairly shouted with delight. 



HOW IT ALL CAME ABOUT 13 

As it was early spring, the ground was almost entirely 
bare save for an occasional small patch of snow which re- 
minded Charley of a white sheep lying upon it. Anna 
noticed, however, that some of the trees which they passed 
seemed almost ready to put forth their buds. 

Anna was a high-school girl, and had she been able to 
keep on with her class, she would have begun to study 
botany that spring. Missing this was her one regret at leav- 
ing town ; but this feeling speedily vanished the day before 
their journey, for when Papa came to dinner, he brought 
with him a handsomely bound herbarium, a reliable text-book 
on botany, and a microscope, and said, " Now, little mother, 
you shall have a chance to study botany right. Botanize to 
your heart's content, and teach Charley also." 



CHAPTER II. 



LEAF BUDS BABY LEAVES 



O 



XE day when Charley came in from a walk with Grandpa, 
he brought with him a lar^e bunch of what he had taken 
to be some kind of flower buds. They 
were in pretty shades of light brown, 
old-rose pink, and gold velvet and satin, 
and they had a sweet, spicy smell. 

14 Oh," said Anna, as she took them 
from his hands, " these are leaf buds. 
Aren't they lovely ? " and she sniffed 
their fragrance and drew her daintv 
finders over their silkv surfaces. 

" Then, won't they open into 
pretty flowers?" asked Charley, dis- 
appointedly. 

" No, not these. They will only 
open and give out leaves by and by. 
There are pictures of them in my 
botany, and I read all about them the 
other day. Wait a minute and I'll get 
the book and see what it says, and 




LEAF BUDS 



LEAF BUDS— BABY LEAVES 



15 



we'll open one of the buds, and look at it through my 
glass." 

She soon returned, bringing both book and glass, and then 
began, " Now, Charley, you see there are several different 
kinds of buds, and we can study leaf buds before we are 
able to get flower buds. The stem of a plant continues its 
growth by means of its terminal bud, that is, the bud 
that seems to be the end of the stem. Every branch 
begins from the buds that grow on the sides of the 
stem. These are called lateral buds. The branches 
in most trees are only repetitions of the main stem, 
so that after a while the lateral bud of the main 
stem becomes the terminal bud at the end of a 
branch which bears lateral buds of its own ; and 
these, as the tree grows each year, develop branches 
and become terminal buds in their turn. Now, here," 
she continued, selecting a stem with three branches, 
" is an example of what I have said. All three of 
these branches have terminal buds on the ends and lateral 
buds on the sides. A year or two ago this was only a single 
stem, and what is now the middle one was much shorter then, 
and bore a terminal bud, and lateral buds on the sides, and it 
is from the lateral buds that these other two branches grew." 

" Oh, I see," said Charley ; "and if I hadn't pulled this, 
both of these branches would have had others growing from 
the lateral buds on their sides next year." 




TERMINAL 
BUD 



16 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 




LATERAL BUDS 



11 Yes, that is the way exactly ; and then branches keep on 
growing from buds each year, and so the tree gets to be larger 

and larger, and to have so many branches 
that you can't tell sometimes which was the 
starting stem. Now, let us cut this bud 
and see what is inside of it. In a couple of 
weeks all these little pieces that look like 
velvet and satin, and are called scales in the 
botany, will turn back and drop off, and the 
leaves will then be out. Some buds will have 
only one leaf or the foundation of a leaf in 
them ; but large, strong buds like these will 
have a whole cluster of little leaves folded 
up in them. The buds you see are the satin-lined cradles in 
which the baby leaves, which were formed the year before, are 
rocked and kept warm all through the cold winter. The babies 
have their food packed with them. That is, there is enough 
nourishment packed in each bud to nourish the leaves as they 
grow larger and larger, until, after a while, when spring comes, 
their pretty cradle gets too small for them, and they burst it 
open and come out as full-grown leaves. Lend me your knife, 
and we will cut the bud and see how much we can see inside 
of it." 

Anna cut the bud lengthwise, and, placing it under the 
glass, bade Charley look at it, which he did. 

11 Oh, how funny!" he exclaimed presently. "I can see 



LEAF BUDS— BABY LEAVES 17 

the leaves and the stems quite plainly, but the stems are all 
hairy, and the leaves are curled up so that they look like 
little green baby mice. Aren't they cunning ? Call May 
and let her see them too." 

Baby May was very willing to take a peep at the baby 
leaves, and admired them quite to Charley's satisfaction. 

" I think these must be the babies meant in the song, 

' Rock-a-bye, baby, on the tree top, 
When the wind blows the cradle will rock,' " 

said Anna, as she showed them to May. 

" And zen when ze bough b'eaks, do zey all fall down and 
dit tilled?" asked Baby May sympathetically. 

" Yes, I guess so ; but Charley broke this bough off, so 
these babies will never come out of their pretty cradles, 
because they will die." 

This made tender-hearted little May feel so badly that 
Grandma, who came into the room just then, told Charley to 
put the buds in a large glass jar full of water and stand them 
in a sunny window. He did so, and May woke up one morn- 
ing to find that the baby leaves were babies no longer, but 
had broken out of their silken cradles some days before the 
babies out in the trees were able to do so. 

That evening Grandpa was told all about the first botany 
lesson and at once became interested in that, as he was in 
everything the children did. 



18 



SPRIXGTIME FLOWERS 



" Do you think I can find specimens enough to till my 
herbarium ? " asked Anna. 

14 Dear me. yes. child. Why, the woods will be full of 

flowers in a week or 
two. I suspect arbutus 
is out now." 

"Arbutus ? " cried 
Anna joyfully. "Oh. 
Mamma, it was arbu- 
tus, wasn't it. that 
Grandpa sent you last 
spring ? The flowers 
were all pink and white, 
and, oh. so fragrant ! 
Don't you remember ? " 
"Yes. indeed. I was so odad to have it." answered 
Mamma, turning a grateful glance to Grandpa. " I remember 
how I used to pick it in the woods over there when I was a 
Sfirl. It Pfrew so thick on the hill then, and I don't think I've 
ever found a sweeter flower." 

" It's just as thick now as then." said Grandpa : "I noticed 
that it was budding last week. Tell you what. Mother," he 
added, turning to Grandma, "you might get us up a lunch 
to-morrow, and I'll take these young folks over in the morn- 
ing. if it's fine." 

The children looked the thanks they did not speak, and 




OPENING BUDS 



LEAF BUDS— BABY LEAVES 19 

went to bed early that night to dream of the treasures they 
would find in the woods the next day. 

But alas for their expectations ! Anna awoke next morn- 
ing- to the sound of falling rain, and, going to the window, 
looked out upon a sky so leaden in hue as to prevent the 
hope of any clearing up for that day at least. Charley was 
not long in making the same discovery, and it was with a 
very disappointed look upon their faces that our two little 
friends entered the dining room for breakfast. 

" Well, I declare," said Grandpa, " clouds without and 
clouds within. Here," passing a dish of rosy-cheeked apples, 
" these are brighter to look at than either of your faces on 
this day. Try your teeth on one of these, Mousie, and forget 
about the weather." 

Grandpa called Anna " Mousie " because of her quiet 
little ways. 



CHAPTER III. 



A RAINY MORNING S WORK ROOTS 




N spite of Grandpa's cheeriness, the 
children could not forget their dis- 
appointment very long, and when 
Mamma came into the sitting 
room an hour or two after break- 
fast, she found Anna and Charley 
gazing dismally out of the window, and 
Baby May sitting in a disconsolate little heap 
on Grandma's pretty rag carpet, saying to 
herself, " Grandpa's house isn't nice 'tall 
when ze bad rain turns." 
"Well, my young naturalists," said Mamma, in her cheer- 
ful way, u I think we can find something for you to do. Don't 
you think that inasmuch as we cannot get the flowers to-day, 
it might be a good plan to learn what to do with them when 
we do get them ? Anna, bring your botany, and we will have 
a class right here this morning. The flowers will keep, and 
you will appreciate them all the more for a little study about 
them beforehand. 

" Now," she continued, as Anna returned and handed her 



A RAINY MORNING'S WORK— ROOTS 



21 



the book, " we will not divide this into lessons to be com- 
mitted to memory, as I dare say would be done in school. 
Anna, I suppose, has read it all over, or will do so ; but you, 
Charley, will understand it better by hearing it read and 
talked about. I will hold the book for reference, and we will 
try to fix in our minds a few points that will help us when we 
get our flowers. Now, first, Charley, can you tell me what 
botany is ?" a 

" It is the book that teaches us about flowers," 
said Charley. 

" Yes, but it is a little more than 
that. It is the study or science of 
plants, or, rather, of the entire vege- 
table world ; and a great deal of this 
is not contained in any book, but is 
learned from studying the plants 
themselves. Anna, do all plants 
bear flowers ? " 

" I do not think so, Mamma." 

" No, that is one of the first things we have to learn. 
There are two kinds or two divisions, a higher and a lower 
form. You will probably not have anything to do with the 
lower form for some time yet, though it is well to keep it in 
mind. The plants that do not bear flowers and, therefore, do 
not start from seeds, are called in botany cryptogams, or 
flowerless plants. Ferns all belong to this division and so do 




CRYPTOGAMOUS LEAF 



±? SPRINGTIME FIOWERS 

all the pretty mosses of which you are so fond. Instead of 
bearing blossoms and fruit which contain seed, cryptogams 
: : ~ : . . t ziztz rr: "".:. : y \ -~~ :: szrti :r "n-r l::~5 
of dust, whicK tiny as tht arc Donfain some Form the 
means of reproduction. But. as these spores are so minute, 
it is more difficult to study cryptogams, so, excepting to 
indicate what the division includes, we will pass it over for 

" The other kind, to which belong all the varieties of flow- 
ers, trees, and shrubs with which you are acquainted, are 
called phanerogams, or flowering plants, and this is the first 
division learned in analyzing. But there are so many differ- 
ent kinds of flowering plants, and the resemblance between 
ziztzzi - ~ :.:— : -.:-.: '.:.-: lit -:-.-'. tximini:: : r. :- r.ri-ssiry 

;x; i rjiif rxiir.ir.i:: : r. 




„ . - ..._.. - . . ..... 



- j'.it.zs :■... : : ~± :r : r. ;. =rri 
■■= i xt^: iti.- :: .-ir. i: : ut 
in: .. : :.T :. . : 

:♦ :-i:~t-e .- :x t he ~'~ xix^- :•: :x± c'^rx if -:: " r .: 

away in it. But jecanse we are an: : know something 

i:::: z'zt :. : i:zzzt ?.zs :: ir.i'v:::.; ^e t-^ !^vt :x± :tt.. :-.:. : 
5i" :\ : x\ . ~. x x. x~t }. : : . : x - .- "x :.ii: x : : rxx ~s x~-r xr= : Xt x 
or beginning of the plant, which is generally called the radicle. 
This has two leaves, which are different in shape from those 
x;z: ::~t dz-r iris l;: ztz-'ttz. z'r.trr. '.its zr.t . 



. . . . ~ . . r .- - 



A RAINY MORNING'S WORK— ROOTS 



23 




BEAN, SHOWING FIRST 
LEAF AND ROOT 
GROWTHS 



from which the plant grows. These first leaves are called 

cotyledons, and this little stem in between them is sometimes 

spoken of as the plumule, though it is really 

the first of the terminal buds of which Anna 

spoke yesterday. In small seeds it is so tiny 

as to be invisible to the naked eye, but by 

looking at it through a glass, we shall be 

able to see it. A bean is a very good seed 

to look at, so I have brought some with me. 

Lend me your knife, Charley, and we will 

open this one." 

Charley did so, and Mamma cut the 

thick skin which served as a covering, and 

then the two leaves, which were each the shape of a half 
bean, were very plain ; while between them was 
the little stem, or baby plant, which was very 
pretty when viewed under Anna's glass. 

" Now," said Mamma, "as a plant grows, this 
little stem rises higher and higher, and other 
leaves begin to come, and then the first leaves, 
or cotyledons, drop off. You can see all this 
in a few days, when Grandpa's beans begin to 
grow. Those cotyledons are thick, you see. 
The reason for this is that they are filled with 

nourishment for the little plant, and after it absorbs all the 

nourishment so provided, it is strong enough, if it be a 




YOUNG PLANT, 
SHOWING 
COTYLEDONS, 
OR FIRST 
LEAVES 



24 SPRINGTIME FLO WERS 

healthy plant, to take its own nourishment from the earth by 
means of its roots, and from the air by means of its leaves. 

" When we analyze, we must study first the stem, then 
the leaves, roots, and blossoms. Sometimes a plant is so 
well known or bears such unmistakable signs of its family in 
one of these parts, that we know what it is without a minute 
examination of them all. This is not thorough analysis, 
however, though sometimes it answers, especially if we are 
not able to get the whole plant. 

" Now, about roots. It is sometimes said that stems spring 
from roots, but this is not correct. All roots spring from the 
embryo, which sends the root down into the ground and the 
stem up into the air, and other roots spring from the main 
root just as branches grow from the stem. These branches 
are called secondary roots, and in some plants they divide and 
subdivide until a fine network of small roots or rootlets is 
formed. 

" If you take a slip or a cutting from some plants and put 
it in the ground, roots will start from the stem and a plant 
will soon grow. In a plant of this kind, we notice that these 
roots generally come from the nodes, that is, the places on the 
stem from which leaves start, and are merely a repetition under 
ground of the leaves and branches of the plant above ground." 

" But all roots are not like that, Mamma," said Anna. 

11 No, not all ; and now we will look a little at the different 
divisions. First, we have fibrous roots, which are formed as 



A RAINY MORNING'S WORK— ROOTS 



25 




I have told you. These are the kind of roots most annuals 
have." 

" What are annuals, Mamma ? " asked Charley, to whom this 
long discourse on roots was becoming rather 
tiresome, though he was trying faithfully to 
understand it all. 

"Annuals are the plants or flowers which 
complete their growth in one year. That is, 
they grow from seed in the spring, and die in 
the fall, after they have grown seed of their 
own. These plants have fibrous roots, and the 
fine branches they send out are called rootlets, 
and some of them are as fine as Baby May's 
hair. You will find that the small white 

violets have roots of this kind, while 
j|^ some of the larger varieties of violets 
have straight fibrous roots. 

" Then we have fleshy roots. These 
are principally biannuals ; that is, plants 
which take two years to complete their 
growth. Carrots, potatoes, and turnips 
belong to this order, as do also most varie- 
ties of lilies. In these the root, which is 
sometimes called a tuber, is raised the first 
year, and is planted the next spring to 
obtain the blossom. These fleshy roots 



FIBROUS ROOT 




FLESHY ROOT 



26 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

contain a large amount of nourishment, which is used for the 
plant the next spring. Now, there are a number of different 
kinds of fleshy roots, some of which are named according to 
their shape ; for example, those which are conical, like the 
carrot, tapering from the crown, where it joins the stalk, 
down to- a fine point ; and those which are turnip-shaped, 
called napiform, that is, large and thick above, and then 
ending abruptly in a downward point as the turnip does. 
Others are shaped like the spindle which Grandma used 
to use on her spinning wheel. Between these which I have 
mentioned there are all kinds of variations. 

" But I see Charley is tired of all this, and rightly, too, for 
it is a good deal for a little boy to remember. I believe if he 
goes down cellar he will find quite a number of the last kind 
of roots I have told you about, and perhaps, if they were 
washed very clean, Baby May might like them for playthings." 




CHAPTER IV. 

STEMS AND LEAVES 

HE next day was still rainy, but Mamma 
found means of continuing the botany les- 
sons, and the little talk of the day before 
had been something to make the children 
forget the weather. 
So after breakfast was over and the children began to 
wonder what they could find to do, she brought into the 
room several of Grandma's plants and said, " Well, shall we 
continue our botany lesson ? " 

"Yes, indeed, Mamma," said Anna; "but what are we 
to study now?" 

" We will see about that. Charley, do you know what 
we talked about yesterday ? ' 7 

" Oh, yes, Mamma, about roots." 

"Very well. Now, to-day we will look at the other parts 
of a plant. Look at this geranium, Charley. What parts do 
you see ? " 

"The leaves and the flowers, Mamma.'' 

" And what do the leaves and flowers grow from ? " 

" From the stem, do they not ? " 



28 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



" Quite right. Now the stem of the plant fills the same 
place as the axle of Grandpa's wagon. It bears all the other 
parts. Roots, leaves, branches, and flowers all spring from 
the stem. Do all plants have the same kind of a stem, 
Anna?" 

" I don't think so, Mamma." 

" No, they do not. Look, for example, at the difference 
between the plants before you. The calla lily, you see, has a 
thick, fleshy stem, while that of the geranium is drier and 
more woody. These two plants will show you the varieties 
of stems which form the first two divisions in 
flowering plants, as you will find when you 
begin to analyze. In the exogenous or dicotyled- 
onous plants the wood fibres are in regular 
circles around a central pith. If we should cut 
a piece of geranium and look at it under Anna's glass, we 
should see that it belongs to that order. 

" If we take a piece of the lily stalk, however, we shall 
see that the wood fibres are arranged irregularly through the 
stem, and do not form a circle. This, therefore, 
belongs to the endogenous or monocotyledonous 
division. These names are hard for you to 
remember; but when you have them properly 
fixed in your minds, you will be able to tell 
by a glance at the stem to which of the two 
great divisions of phanerogams a plant belongs, endogenous 




EXOGENOUS 




STEMS AND LEAVES 



29 



" You will learn other properties of stems — their manner 
of growth and the time they last — from the different plants. 
So let us now take a look at leaves. What is the most 
important use of leaves to the plant, Anna?" 

" To take in air and light, I think, Mamma." 

" Yes; leaves serve the same purpose in plants that lungs 
do in animals. Besides, these leaves are sometimes used for 
the storage of nourishment, as in the case of the cotyledons 
of which we learned yesterday, and the thickened leaves or 
scales which protect the buds, as you saw in those leaf buds 
we had the other day. 

" Leaves which do nothing else but take in light and air 
are sometimes spoken of as foliage, and it is of them we 
shall talk this morning. If we look 
at a leaf, we shall find that it usually 
consists of three parts — the blade, the 
petiole or footstalk, and the stipules. 
The blade is the most essential part. 
It is the green which we recognize 
as foliage. It is made of soft green 
pulp, braced and supported by fibres 
which make a frame, and are called 
the ribs or veins of a leaf. One of the first things we notice 
about a plant in analyzing it is whether its leaves are net- 
veined or parallel-veined. These points mark the division 
to which it belongs, just as the arrangement of the wood 




NET-VEINED LEAF 



30 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



fibres in its stem does. In the net-veined leaves the veins 
branch off from the main rib and divide and subdivide until 
a network is formed, too fine to be visible to the naked eve. 

Can you find a net- veined 
xe, Charley ? 

After a min- 
ute's hesitation 
Charley broke 
off the leaf of a 
- :arlet orera- 




77 •: - Z" I Z.-.7 



mum. 

" Yes, that is 

right Now, look at it, Charley, and see how the little veins 
run into each other, and what a fine network they form. 
You can see it best on the under side of the leaf. Thtre ar-r 
two kinds of net-veined leaves. First, when the veins all 
branch from the centre rib, sometimes called penni- 
veined, since the veins are arranged on the rib as 
on a feather, and penna is the Latin word for 
feather. The other kind are called palmate, digi- 
tate, or radiate-veined, and branch off toward all 
sides like little ravs. The geranium leaf is radiate- 

J n CA I.1 -4 LI T 

r.necL 

After the little folks had examined it thoroughly, Mamma 
continued, "Parallel veins are also of two kinds. The first is 
when the veins all start together at the base of the leaf and 




STEMS AND LEAVES 



31 



run parallel to each other to its point. Corn and grass are 
examples of this kind of a leaf, and so are some lily leaves. 
The other is when the veins start at the midrib and run 
parallel to each other to its margin or edge. This calla lily, 

you see, is an example of this second kind. 
Linnaeus, one of the oldest naturalists, 
called the parallel veins, nerves, and parallel-veined 
leaves, nerved leaves. And now we have gone over 
some of the most essential points. Charley, what 
did we talk about yesterday ? " 

" About the roots, Mamma, and how they go 
down into the ground out of the seed when the 
stem comes up." 

" And how they divide," added Anna; ''and 
that there are two divisions of them, fibrous and 
fleshy roots." 

"Yes, and there are several grades between 
these two. Well, what comes next ? " 

"The stem," said Charley, "and that holds the 
plants together like the axle of Grandpa's wagon." 
11 Very good," said Mamma, " and to-day we are 
studying leaves. We have had their divisions by 
veins. We will not spend much time on their shape, because 
we shall learn that best as we study the plants, and we know 
the variety is almost endless. But I want you to look closely 
at this leaf. These little appendages at the base of the foot- 




CORN LEAF 



32 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

stalk, that is, where it joins the branch, are called stiptiles, 
and you will find something answering to these on almost all 
kinds of leaves. And now I think we have had lesson enough 
for this morning. To-morrow, perhaps, we shall have some 
flowers to examine, and, if we do, what we have already 
learned will be of use to us." 

Grandma came in then to say that if the children would 
like to pop corn, the kitchen fire was just right for it, so the 
little scientists forgot their studies for a while. 




CHAPTER V. 

PARTS OF FLOWER — ARBUTUS 

HE next morning was still rainy, but our little 
folks were not so much cast down by it as on 
the day previous ; and when Anna went into the 
sitting room after breakfast and found a bunch 
of arbutus, gathered by the hired man the day 
before, in a glass, on the table, she felt that for the present 
she needed nothing to complete her happiness. She could 
hardly wait until Charley and May returned from the barn, 
where they had gone with Grandpa to watch the calves — or 
" baby tows," as May called them — take their breakfast of 
buckwheat gruel and hay tea. 

"Well," said Mamma, smilingly, coming into the room 
while Charley and May were admiring the arbutus, " our 
botany class seems all ready for work early this morning, and 
we have a specimen too, and a very pretty one. Now we 
must hurry and get through with our lesson, so that we shall 
have time to examine it carefully. Anna, bring the botany, 
and you may bring the glass too, for we shall have use for it 
later. Come, Charley, leave the flowers now. You'll have a 
chance to look at them again soon." 

3 



34 



SPRINGTIME FIOWERS 



" Tan May have a yesson too?" asked Baby, feeling half 
afraid she might not have a part in what Anna and Charley 
enjoyed so much. 

" Yes, Baby May, sit down by sister," said Anna, drawing 

her into the big old-fashioned rocking- 
chair, which would have held half a 
dozen people of their size. " And she 
must be very quiet and not 
interrupt Mamma when she 
is telling us about the pretty 
flowers." 

Mamma looked smilingly 
around at the little group and be- 
gan, " I think we all know the 
beauty which the flower gives to 
the plant, and we shall be glad to 
learn the parts of the flowers themselves. 
Now, all flowers are formed after one 
general plan, which is, however, much modi- 
fied in the different varieties, in some of 
which the parts are so run into each other, 
or of such peculiar forms, that they can 
scarcely be recognized at a first glance. We 
shall hardly find a plant which contains each part in the 
simple and perfect form, but for study we ought to get a 
plant that does this as nearly as possible. I see the author 




FLAX BLOSSOMS 



PARTS OF FLOWER— ARBUTUS 



35 



of Anna's botany has taken Flax as a pattern plant; this is 
very good, and we will do the same, because Grandma 
happens to have some flax blooming in a box in the kitchen. 

" Flowers are said to be perfect when they have a complete 
perianth ; that is, both a calyx and a corolla. Charley may 
go out to the kitchen and get two or three flax blossoms, 
and we will see by one of them what these 
words mean." 

Charley soon returned, and Mamma 
continued : 

" The calyx is the little green circle 
below the flower. See, in flax it is just 
like a little cup holding the flower. 
When it is made up of several parts or 
pieces, these are called sepals. The 
corolla is the part that comes next to the 
calyx. It is generally colored. In flax 
it is the blue part which you recognize as the flower. 
When the corolla is made up of different parts or divisions, 
they are called petals. Now, can you remember the differ- 
ence between the two ? " 

" I can," answered Charley. 

" And I know Anna can, for she, no doubt, knew it before. 
The calyx and the corolla taken together are called the peri- 
anth. Now, Charley, look at the flower and tell me what you 
see in it besides the calyx and the corolla." 




CALYX AND COROLLA OF 
THE MORNING GLORY 



36 



SPRINGTIME FIOWERS 




"The centre, Mamma." 

"Yes, that is all it is to you now; but as the centre con- 
tains the little seeds, you can see how important 
it is. We must know its different parts, which 
are the stamens and the pistils. In some flowers, 
the flax for example, we say the ovary also ; but 
the ovary is properly only a part of, or the base 
of, the pistil. The stamens consist of two parts 
— the filament, or stalk, and the anther, which is 
the useful part. This is a little case with two or 
stamens and more perforated cells through which is discharged 

PISTILS 

a sort of powder, usually yellow or red, which is 
called pollen. Anna, do you remember how Charley gave 
you a tiger lily last summer, telling you to smell it, 
and when you did so, it left brown powdery marks 
on your nose ? Well, those marks were made of 
pollen which you rubbed from the anthers as you 
touched them. This pollen is very valuable to the 
plant. It is the food for the baby seeds in the 
ovary. 

" The pistil, when complete, may be said to con- 
tain three parts — the stigma, the style, and the 
ovary. In many plants, however, there is only one a pistil 
ovary, which is common to all the pistils and to which they 
are all joined. Such a flower is the flax, but it can hardly be 
called complete. The style is the stem of the pistil, and 



PARTS OF FLOWER— ARBUTUS 37 

the stigma is on the top of this. Sometimes the stigma is 
shaped like a little knob or ball, and sometimes it is only the 
point of a style ; but whatever its shape, it is always moist, 
and it catches and absorbs the pollen which falls from the 
anthers, and sends it down through the style into the ovary, 
to feed the baby seeds. Now, we have all the parts, unless, 
indeed, we include the torus, or receptacle, which is simply 
the end of the stalk upon which the flower organs grow. 
But in order that you may understand it all better, we will 
look at a flax blossom through Anna's glass." 

" Oh, Mamma, don't tear ze f'ower," exclaimed Baby May 
reproachfully, as Mamma opened a flower so they could see. 

"Just this one, dear, or else you wouldn't be able to under- 
stand about it. Mamma is glad Baby is so fond of the pretty 
flowers; it is very wrong to tear them up for nothing, but 
we must do so sometimes when we study about them." 

She had cut it lengthwise through the calyx and corolla, 
and when she put it under the glass, they could see plainly 
the stamens with their anthers, the moist stigmas of the pistils, 
and even the beginning of the tiny seed in the ovary. 

When they had all seen these, Mamma continued : 

" I have told you now about all the parts of a flower. A 
flower \s perfect when it has both pistils and stamens, complete 
when it has both calyx and corolla. It is regular when all the 
parts of each set are alike in size and shape, and symmetrical 
when there is an equal number of parts in each set or circle of 



38 SPRIXGTIME FLOWERS 

organs. The rlax is complete, because it has both calyx and 
corolla. It is regular and symmetrical, having five parts in 
each set; but yet it is not quite perfect, because the pistils are 
not complete. Instead of having five tiny ovaries, one in the 
base of each pistil, the ovary is all in one ; but, as I told you 
before, we can hardly find a plant without some irregularity of 
this sort. We will have just one point more, and then take up 
the arbutus, towards which Anna is casting such lonodncr eves. 

" There is always a certain number that seems to be run- 
ning through the flower, or, at least, to be recognized in some 
of its parts. It is oftenest five, three, or four, but occasion- 
ally two. Whatever the ground number may be. it runs 
through the whole flower in svmmetrical blossoms. The 
ground number is the first circle of the flower. In svmmet- 
rical flowers, also, the circles are alternate ; that is, the petals 
stand over the intervals between the sepals ; and the stamens, 
when of the same number, stand over the intervals between 
the petals : or when there are a double number of stamens, 
the first circle does this, and the inner circle alternates with 
the first, as do the pistils with the second. This is proof that 
flowers are altered branches. The parts come in whorls, 
and are, therefore, only altered leaves." 

" What is a whorl. Mamma ?" asked Anna, who, as usual, 
was listening with closest attention, as indeed were the other 
children. 

" A xvhoj'l is a circle of leaves ; that is, the number of 



PARTS OF FLOWER— ARBUTUS 39 

leaves you would pass with a string or line if you drew it from 
one leaf to the next higher on the same perpendicular as the 
first. Thus, for example, when a whorl has three leaves, the 
leaves, if they all grew at the same height on the stem, would 
be one-third the circumference of the stem apart. I hope you 
now have a general idea of the plan of a phanerogamous plant 
in your minds, and we shall go into the details as we study 
from the plants themselves. Charley, can you tell me whether 
Arbutus is a cryptogamous or a phanerogamous plant ? " 

" It is phanerogamous, Mamma, because it has a blos- 
som." 

"Quite right. This is the flower that Anna and I so 
much admire. Now, let us look at the stem." 

She took a piece off, and, putting it under a glass, asked 
Charley whether the wood was in regular circles round a cen- 
tral pith, or in fibres. 

" In circles, I think, Mamma." 

11 Then you're not sure? Well, we must be sure if possi- 
ble. Anna, can you tell?" 

" Oh, yes, Mamma, in circles. I can see the pith quite 
plainly." 

" Then we have gained one point. The wood is in cir- 
cles. Now, what about the leaves ? " 

" They are net-veined." 

" Well, then, we'll look at the flower. First, taking one 
away from the little bunch, we find that inside the two little 



40 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



involucres, as the leaves at the base of the flower ma}' be called, 
it has a regular calvx of Light screen, and contains, in a modi- 
tied form, live sepals. They are united, as are the petals of 
the corolla, which also number five. The corolla, you see, is 
somewhat trumpet-shaped, with the top cut or cleft into rive 

divisions. Much as Baby 
^%\ May dislikes to have us 

cut the flowers, I am 
afraid we shall have to 
do so this time. Xow, 
Anna, look very closely 

and tell me what you 

?> 
see. 

A riower was placed 

under the maomifvincr 

odass, and after a minute 

Anna said, " I can see 

the ovary. Mamma, and 

it is in five divisions, but 

it has only one pistil. It 

has ten stamens, and the 

anthers seem to send the pollen directly into the ovaries, 

which have little holes on top. The pistil is long and seems 

to come from the centre of the group of ovaries." 

"Verv o'ood indeed. With such a fund of information, 
we ouo-ht to have no trouble in finding out what it is." 




ARBUTUS 



PARTS OF FLOWER— ARBUTUS 41 

14 Why, Mamma, we know what it is already," said 
Charley. 

44 Are you quite sure ? " 

"Yes, for Grandpa said it was arbutus, and he knows." 
Charley's faith in Grandpa never admitted of doubt. 

"Grandpa is right, of course; but I am showing you 
how to trace it from the beginning, so that you could find 
out what it was just as if you had not heard before. We 
know that it is phanerogamous, and by the leaves or stems we 
found it was exogenous. Phanerogamous plants are divided 
into two classes — exogenous, having net-veined leaves and 
the wood in circles; and endogenous, having the wood in 
fibres through the stems and parallel-veined leaves. The 
flower, too, in exogens is generally in threes and fives. Ar- 
butus has its parts in sets of fives. There are a number of 
divisions of exogens, and we place this in the third because 
the petals of the corolla are somewhat united. This is called 
the monopetalous division. There are two divisions of this. 
The first has the ovary inferior to the calyx ; that is, the 
calyx is above or over the ovary. This flower does not be- 
long to that class, but passing to class B in this division, we 
find the ovary superior, and the first family given in this class 
is the Heath family. It has five or ten stamens and a five- 
celled ovary, with the anthers opening into the apex of each 
cell. Anna, turn to the Heath family and look for Trailing 
Arbutus." 



42 SPRIXGTIME FLOWERS 

In a few minutes Anna found it, and the description so ex- 
actly suited their flower that they at once knew that their 
first analysis had been a success. I wonder how many of 
our little people will remember if I tell them that the scientific 
name of this plant is Ep:~c}-a repens / 



CHAPTER VI. 

SAXIFRAGE BLOODROOT PARTRIDGE BERRY 

PHE next morning dawned bright and clear, and the sun- 
shine had a summer-like warmth that almost made one 
forget how cold the air was in the shade. 

To the children's great delight, after Grandpa came in 
from the barn work, he said to Grandma : " Well, mother, if 
you've got some cookies and gingerbread put away for us, I 
guess we'll have use for them to-day, for we're going out to 
the woods." 

" You must wear your rubbers, Anna, and your warmest 
clothes," said Mamma; "and, Charley, you wear your boots 
and overcoat. It is too early to go picnicking in the same 
clothes you would wear in June. The woods will be very 
damp, despite the warm sunshine." 

The little Burtons were brought up to be obedient, so 
they made no objection to what to them seemed useless pre- 
cautions. An hour later a merry party set out for the 
wooded hillside, nearly a mile away. Each of the children 
carried an empty basket for specimens, and Grandpa had a 
larger one filled with luncheon. They were to be back in time 
for the one o'clock dinner; but, as Grandpa said, "There's 



44 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

something in the very air of the woods that makes you feel 
like eating," and his basket was emptied without any 
difficulty, and filled with mosses and ferns for the return 
home. 

Arbutus was there, sure enough, and Anna gathered 
enough to fill several boxes to send to friends in town ; but 
that, sweet as it was, was hardly more admired than the 
many other plants and flowers which seemed to have been 
brought out by the rain. 

The children filled their baskets, taking all the roots they 
could, and, as a result, had plenty of flowers for the next few 
days' examination. 

The afternoon was spent in sorting them over and pack- 
ing them in the cellar to keep until they were wanted. The 
next morning Mamma had several plants arranged on a tray 
for their lesson. 

''Which shall we take first?" she asked. 

" This one, please," answered Anna, selecting a plant with 
a bunch of tiny white flowers at the head of a rather hairy 
stem which grew up from a bunch of leaves resting on the 
ground, and a tangled mass of fine, fibrous roots. 

"Very well. That will do nicely. Charley, you may look 
at it first and tell me all you can about it." 

11 It is a phanerogamous plant, and I think belongs to the 
exogenous class. The leaves are net-veined, and the stem 
seems to be in circles round a centre pith." 



SAXIFRAGE— BLOODROOT— PARTRIDGE BERRY 45 



" Quite right. You are learning to observe nicely. Now, 
Anna, look carefully at a flower and tell me what you can 
see first without cutting." 

" It has both calyx and corolla, and the corolla is of 
separate petals. The calyx is cup-shaped and composed of 
five sepals which are not quite sepa- 
rate. It has ten stamens." 

" Then it has a complete peri- 
anth, or set of floral envelopes ; and, 
as the petals are wholly separate, we 
know that it belongs to the polypetal- 
ous division of exogens. Turning 
to that division, we find that it has 
ten stamens, just twice the number 
of sepals, and that it belongs to class 
B of this division. Are the leaves 
alternate or opposite ? " 

" Alternate, Mamma." 

"Yes; and now, Anna, cut the 
flower and look at it through the glass and tell us what you see." 

Anna did so, and said : 

" The ovary is two-celled and contains a large number of 
little round seeds. The stamens seem to grow right out of 
the calyx." 

" Well, look at a bud and notice how the leaves are 
folded in it." 




EARLY SAXIFRAGE 



46 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



" They lap over each other." 

"Yes, I thought so. They are what we call inebricated in 
the bud. As the stamens seem to come from the calyx, and 
the leaves are opposite, I think it belongs to the Saxifrage 

family, which is very large indeed, and 
contains a great variety of plants. These 
flowers are in a panicle ; that is, a bunch at 
the top of a stem. The stamens are ten in 
number, and the flowers are inebricated in 
the bud, so there is no doubt about its 
being the Early Saxifrage in the Saxifrage 
family. Do you think you understand how 
to analyze now ? " 

"Yes, Mamma, I think we do." 
" Very well, then, Anna, you and 
Charley take that waxy white flower with 
the red root and see if you can find out 
what it is." 

The children went to work patiently, 
and after a while Anna announced that 
they had found it in the Poppy family, that 
its true name was Sanguinaria Canadensis, and its common 
name, Bloodroot. 

"That is right," answered Mamma. "You have done 
very well indeed. It is called bloodroot because the root 
contains a large quantity of red juice. Notice how it has 




BLOODROOT 



SAXIFRAGE— BLOODROOT— PARTRIDGE BERRY 47 



stained your hands. Bloodroot is a valuable medicine. It is 
frequently combined with whiskey, and an excellent liniment 
is made in this way." 

"Yes," said Grandma, " I remember one year that old Mr. 
Turner was laid up for months with rheumatism. An old 
Indian woman who used to come around here told him about 
bloodroot, and it cured him in a few 
days." 

" It is well always to keep in 
mind the plants that have medicinal 
properties," said Mamma. " If, for 
example, Charley should ever have 
a chance, which he used to wish for 
so much, to play Robinson Crusoe, 
he might find knowledge of this 
kind of service to him. Well, we 
have left these two plants bearing 
red berries. We can't get the blos- 
soms now. You are tired, I dare 

say, of analyzing, so we will get rid of these in a very irregular 
way. Grandma, what are they called around here ? " 

" That one with the smallest leaves and the two-eyed berry 
is Partridge Berry, and the other is the Wintergreen." 

" Now, Charley, turn to the index and see if you can find 
both of those words. If so, see what family the plants belong 
to and what their true names are." 




WINTERGREEN 



48 



SPRIXGTIME FLOWERS 



" The wintergreen belongs to the Heath family," Charley 
answered, after a few minutes. u Its name is Gaultheria pro- 
C2imbcns" stumbling a little over the loner words. " It was 
named in honor of Doctor Gaulthier of Quebec. Oil of 
winterorreen is made from the leaves, and it has astringent 
properties. What does that mean, Mamma?"' 

11 It means binding or contracting. So vou see it mi^ht 

be used for medicine. It has 



4gM 



some mucilaginous properties 
also. Well, what about the 
other ? " 

Anna came to his assist- 
ance now, and in a few minutes 
they announced that the par- 
tridge berry was properly 
known as Mite he I la repens, 
the first part of the name 
being in honor of Dr. Mitchell, 

who was a co-worker with Linnaeus. 

" So both these plants are useful," said Mamma, "and I 

dare sav if vou eive the berries to Babv Mav, she will soon 

find a use for them." 

And I think if anv of the bovs and odds who read this, 

who are not acquainted with the berries, could see them once, 

they too would soon find a use for them. 




PARTRIDGE BERRY 



CHAPTER VII. 

GOLD THREAD DOGTOOTH VIOLET- -LEAVES 

u \ T 7E are going to look at this tiny little white flower this 
morning," said Mamma, when they were gathered 
in the sitting room after one of Grandma's hearty breakfasts. 
"Isn't it a dainty little thing? Look at it, Charley, and tell 
all you can about it." 

'* Its leaves are net-veined, so it belongs to the first divi- 
sion, Mamma." 

" Yes, it is exogenous. You may think at first that it has 
no calyx, but that is a mistake. Its calyx is white, the same 
color as the corolla. As the flower is very tiny, we must 
examine it entirely under a glass ; but we know, to start with, 
that it has a complete perianth composed of a calyx and 
corolla, each of which is composed of five petals. With the 
help of the glass, you can see that it has four pistils and a 
large number of stamens, which, as you get to know flowers 
better, you will understand is one of the characteristics of the 
Crowfoot family. This is a very large family, and composed 
almost entirely of small plants. There are about twenty 
classes of this family, among them being several varieties of 
buttercups, which we will study later. But there is a divi- 

4 



50 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 




sion among them called Coptis, or Gold Thread, to which I 
think we shall find this little plant belongs. If you notice 
these long, bright, yellow fibres among the roots, you will 

understand why it has the latter name. 
Botanists would call this Coptis tri- 
folia, because the leaves are cleft, or 
divided, into three parts." 

" Aren't the leaves pretty?" said 
Anna. " Why are some of the roots 
yellow and others brown ? " 

" I cannot tell you, unless it is that 
the younger roots have not yet been 
able to throw off the color of mother 
earth. The leaves are evergreen ; that 
is, are green all winter. This plant has valuable medicinal 
properties, too." 

" Are all flowers good for medicine, Mamma ? " asked 
Charley, who was ambitious to become a doctor. 

" I suppose they are, only we do not know them all. Ar- 
butus, partridge berry, wintergreen, bloodroot, and gold 
thread, which, excepting saxifrage, are all we have had so 
far, are all used for medicines. And now we have a plant 
here which, so far as I know, has never been found useful 
as medicine ; but I think we shall like to know what it is." 
She held up what looked like a small yellow lily, with long, 
slender, curiously mottled leaves. . 



GOLD THREAD 



GOLD THREAD— DOGTOOTH VIOLET— LEAVES 51 

"That belongs to the Lily family," said Anna, "because 
the flower looks like a lily, and the leaves also." 

" To which of the two divisions of flowering plants, or 
phanerogams, does the Lily family belong, then ?" 

"To the second, Mamma, because the leaves are parallel- 
veined and the wood in the stem is in irregular fibres and 
not around a central pith." 

" Very good indeed. Charley, can you tell me the name 
of this second division ? The other flowers we have had, you 
know, all belong to the first, which is called exogenous." 

" Is it endogenous, Mamma ? " 

" Yes, that is right ; you are progressing finely. And 
now, since we know the family of this flower, we will go 
a little farther. The Lily family is a very large one, and 
includes many plants which you would not at first recognize 
as belonging to that family. But this is so like a lily that we 
may feel quite sure it is included in the class known as 
the lily proper. Its characteristics are that the perianth, 
which includes the calyx and corolla, is of the same color, and 
usually consists of six parts ; that is, two sets of three each, 
which stand for sepals and petals. It has the same number 
of stamens, and usually the ovary contains two cells. Let us 
look at this one." 

The blossom was cut lengthwise, and under Anna's glass 
the two cells could be easily seen. They each contained an 
irregularly shaped little seed formation. 



52 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



This being settled, Mamma continued: "This plant is a 
biennial, which means that it takes two years to complete its 
growth. A seed planted the first year would produce the 
little tuber, or bulb, you see attached to the stem ; for most 
lilies, you know, g-row from tuberous or fleshy roots, and the 
second year the tuber produces the seed-bearing flower. 

Knowing all this, we have no dif- 
ficulty in placing this flower in 
^^3 the variety called Erythro7iium y 
or Dogtooth Violet. It is also 
called Adder's Tongue, from the 
spotted leaves. While it grows 
wild in swampy places, I think it 
would make a handsome plant for 
cultivation." 

u Couldn't it be cultivated, 
Mamma ? " 

" I do not know. There is 
a variety called Erythronium Dejis-leonis, which is very 
similar, save that it is much larger. That is a native of 
Europe, and I have seen it in greenhouses ; but this one, 
which is designated Erythronium A7nerica7uim, is, so far 
as I know, never seen save in its wild condition." 

" Now I should like to have you look a little at these 
leaves. Anna, what kind of leaves has the gold thread?" 
•'Compound, Mamma; they are in three parts." 




DOGTOOTH VIOLET 



GOLD THREAD— DOGTOOTH VIOLET— LEAVES 53 

" Yes, and the divisions are what is called wedge-shaped. 
What about the leaves of the dogtooth violet ?" 

"They are simple in form, and slender and pointed in 
shape." 

11 Yes ; they are what are called lanceolate, or lance-shaped. 
Notice the edges of both. The gold-thread leaf, you see, 
has a notched edge, and the notches point forward like the 
teeth of a saw ; so it is what we call a serrate, or saw-toothed 
edge." 

" The edges of the dogtooth violet are plain and smooth," 
said Anna. 

" Yes ; we call them entire. And the leaf has a tapering 
point, so we call it acuminate, or tapering at the end. If it 
were not tapering, but a short, sharp point, it would be called 
acute. If you had taken botany up in a regular class at 
school, you would have learned all this, and much more, when 
you were studying about leaves ; but I think you will find it 
just as easy to observe the peculiarities of the leaves of each 
plant as you study it. The arbutus leaves, if you remember, 
are mostly oblong, nearly twice as long as they are wide, 
while those of the wintergreen are very slightly serrate. The 
pigeon berry has almost perfectly round leaves with an entire 
edge." 



"■? 



CHAPTER VIIL 



31 




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zrrstrvirv :hri: ::t:.rtv Tht "tre 

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they go directly to the woods to see what flowers could be 
found, and M amma s consent having been obtained, she and 
Charley set forth. 

About the middle of the afternoon they returned, bring- 
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-zz: :v: ; : :-... :h-r z:~tr: v.t rzzi :•:. if - ±A zz fr zrzA 
new ones. Tr- vv v; Zr vtz: vz :::.rv z :Az :: :'.:. 
newspapers into sheets the exact size of the boards, and, 
large as the supply seemed, they found it necessary to 
renew it frequently before their botanical enthusiasm was 
- z : . r r - z. 

The next morning, as soon as the kitchen table was 



ANEMONE— LIVERWORT 55 

cleared, they began to clean the specimens under Mamma's 
direction and put them to press. This is the most important 
part of the work of preparing an herbarium, and it requires 
care and patience, both of which Anna possessed to a rather 
unusual degree ; but Charley, like some other boys, had little of 
either. Knowing the value of the roots, they had been care- 
ful to secure the plants with the roots entire, and in some cases 
had brought .them home without disturbing the earth around 
them. This is a little trying for the finger nails, but it is an 
excellent precaution if the roots are fragile or easily broken, 
and it is particularly good if the specimens are not to be 
cleaned immediately, as the plant is thereby kept in its fresh- 
est condition. Faded flowers do not make good specimens. 

The first thing they did was to remove all the earth, first 
using their fingers, and afterwards a small brush which 
Mamma provided. Then the roots were washed in several 
waters, care being taken not to wet the flowers or leaves 
unless the latter seemed absolutely to require it. They were 
dried carefully with soft old rags, and each one was laid on a 
separate piece of paper, great pains being taken that, in the 
case of the gold thread, the yellow fibre which gives the 
plant its name was plainly discernible among the fine brown 
rootlets. Mamma herself prepared several tuberous plants 
by carefully splitting the tubers, removing most of the con- 
tents, and filling the cavity with cotton. This tended to pre- 
vent decay and also shortened their drying process. 



56 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

After the plants had been arranged, the sheets of paper 
were carefully laid one on top of the other and placed between 
the two boards. These must be put under heavy weights, 
and Grandpa, to whom nothing which pleased the children 
was any trouble, had his hired man cut two square stones, each 
of which required the united strength of the children to lift 
it and place it on top of the boards. Then Mamma explained 
to them how the specimens should be looked at each morning 
and evening, and the damp papers changed for dry ones. At 
first, the papers taken away were dried and used again ; but 
after several usings they became so saturated with plant juice 
that when dried they were stiff and starchy, and, consequently, 
did not absorb well. If the papers are used too often, the 
specimens will not keep their color and are very likely to turn 
black. 

Blotting paper is best for this purpose, because it absorbs 
moisture ; but as none of that was at hand, newspapers made 
a good substitute. A hint from Mamma to Papa a few days 
later brought a good supply of blotting paper, which Anna 
used for the more delicate flowers, as it preserved their color 
better than the other. 

All this took up so much time that it was not until the 
next morning that the children found an opportunity to look 
at the new plants they had brought home. Two of these 
Mamma decided to analyze, and this was accomplished with- 
out any difficulty. 





ANEMONE— LIVERWORT 57 

The first was a very fragile little flower of a delicate pink 
hue, and some of the same variety were also found in pure 
white. The calyx was the same color as the corolla of the 
gold thread, and a little below the flower was a cluster of deli- 
cate green leaves on very fragile stems. It had small, tuberous 
roots resembling tiny sweet potatoes in appearance, and a few 
hairlike fibres were attached to them. After examining the 
stems, the leaves, the number of pistils, and the roots, Charley 
and Anna agreed in placing it in the same 
family as the gold thread, with which it had l ^| 
many points of resemblance, and 
after a little study of the plants 
in the Crowfoot family, it proved 
to be an Anemone, or Windflower. 

" These flowers are a little ir- 
regular," said Mamma. " Sometimes 
you will find both white and colored 
flowers upon the same plant, and sometimes, 
but not frequently, there will be several flowers of different 
colors and sizes above the same involucre, as the little circle 
of leaves below the flower is called. In fact, it is difficult to 
find any two plants which do not differ in regard to the size 
and shade of the flowers, although it is easy to distinguish all 
the family traits in each." 

The other plant had down upon the stems and leaves, which 
were old and leathery looking. The flowers were light blue 



ANEMONE 



5S 



-^f£~ 



or purple, and close to them were two pointed little leaves 
resembling mouse ears in appearance, which might, at first, 
be taken for the calyx, though they are not in any way a part 
of the flower. 

" These leaves are the involucre," said Mamma. " This 
flower, like the anemone and gold thread, has its calyx of the 

same color as the corolla, or per- 
haps it would be better to speak 
of them all as having a colored 
perianth." 

"And this belongs to the Crow- 
foot family too, does it not, Mam- 
mi asked Anna, who was 
rapidly learning to note the dis- 
tinguishing traits of the plants 
she studied. 

" Yes, that is quite right." 
"But the leaves are so differ- 
ent looking, " said Charley. "See, some of them look old 
and withered." 

" Yes ; these are last years leaves. Like the arbutus, 
you see, their leaves keep green during the winter, and the 
new leaves do not come until after the flowers are past 
These odd-looking little downy buds, all crumpled up into 
funny little rolls, are really the new leaves, which will open 
later, but scarcely before the flowers are faded 




ANEMONE— LIVERWORT 59 

"You see this flower has six petals and a number of 
pistils. You will notice one peculiarity about the plant is 
that it has no main stem, but that each single flower and leaf 
comes on a separate stem or scape, which is hairy or downy 
looking. We know it belongs to the Crowfoot family, and 
so, from its peculiarly shaped leaves, we trace it up to the 
class known as hepatica, or liverwort, so-called from the 
shape of the leaf. This specimen is Hepatica triloba, because 
the leaves are divided into three parts. The other variety 
generally has five-lobed leaves." 

" Shall we get any of that ?" asked Anna. 

" No ; I think that grows rather too far north. Now, let 
us show Baby May the funny little baby leaves rolled up here, 
and then I think our lesson will be ended for this time." 



CHAPTER IX. 



VIOLETS 



,NE day Charley came in with both hands 
full of violets. "Just look at them, 
Mamma," he said ; "I found them down 
in the meadow. See, they are yellow 
and purple and white. Aren't they 
lovely ? Can't we analyze all of them ? 
Come, Anna, let us clean them right 
away." 

Anna was nothing loth, and a few 
minutes later found them out on a big 
rock back of the kitchen, with a pan of 

water between them, and a brush and cloth to help them in 

their work of cleansing. Charley washed and Anna dried 

them, and soon they carried in quite a trayful for Mamma's 

help in examination. 

" It won't be hard to find out what they are, will it, Mamma ? 

They all belong to the same family, and we know it without 

looking, don't we?" 

"Yes, we know they belong to the Violet family ; but still 

we may have some difficulty in classifying them in their proper 




VIOLETS 61 

species, for the Violet family has a number of members, and 
they all bear a close resemblance to one another. The violet 
is considered irregular in corolla, because one of its petals is 
different in shape from the rest ; but yet it is complete, regular, 
and symmetrical, because it has both calyx and corolla, and 
five sepals, five stamens, and five petals. The lower petal, you 
see, has a sort of a sack at the base, called in botany a spur. 
It is much larger on some violets than others. The stamens 
are short, and their filaments or stems are broad and flat. They 
grow more or less fast to the pistil and completely cover it 
save for one style. The ovary, as you will see if you examine 
it under a glass, is one-celled and contains a number of seeds. 

" Let us look at the largest of the plants first. See how 
long the stems of the leaves and flowers are ; and, save for an 
occasional graceful curve or bend, they grow perfectly erect or 
straight, instead of lying flat on the ground. Charley, can you 
tell me what shape these leaves are?" 

" Heart-shaped, I think, Mamma." 

" Yes, they are almost perfectly heart-shaped. These 
flowers are dark blue or purple. I think we will venture to 
put this in the herbarium as the Viola cucullata, or common 
blue violet." 

" Here is another dark blue one," said Anna. " The leaves 
are hairy, and not at all heart-shaped. They are more nearly 
arrow-shaped, though not quite sharp enough for that." 

11 Nevertheless, I think we must call that the arrow-leaved 



62 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

violet, or Viola sagittata. These leaves are nearest what are 
called halberd-shaped, so called because they resemble in shape 
the halberd, or battle-axe, of ' ye olden time.' " 

"And those little white ones — what are they?" 

"Just the common sweet white violet; Viola blanda is 
their botanical name." 

" Let May look at them," said Charley. "They look just 
like little faces." 

" 'Es, 'et May see," said Baby, who was always ready to 
look at flowers. 

" Well, look, darling," said Anna. " Don't they have pretty 
faces ? I think violets must be captive fairies who are fastened 
to one place so they can't get away. See how they keep their 
little heads down. It must be that they feel sad because they 
can't be free, or, at least, we can believe that about them." 

" Tan't zey ever be free any more ? " asked May pityingly, 
for she always took fairy stories literally, and her tender baby 
heart was full of sympathy for even imaginary sorrows. 

" No, the flowers themselves can never be free," said 
Mamma, who always encouraged her little people in their 
pretty fancies. " But they can raise seeds in which are baby 
plants, and when these little seeds are ripe, a big wind will come 
along and free them from the plant on which they grew, and 
blow them far away. Then they will fall into the ground, and 
next year will grow into other flowers with real faces." 

" And now, Mamma, look at the big yellow one," said 



VIOLETS 63 

Charley. " See, it grows up between two big hairy leaves, 
and the leaves are heart-shaped too, but they curl up so that 
we can't see their shapes unless we unroll them." 

" Yes, I see," answered Mamma. "That is the Viola 
pubescens, or downy yellow violet. Pubes means down-like 
hairs, and the name comes from that. Did you get this in the 
meadow too ? " 

"Yes, Mamma, but not in the same place as the others. 
It was down by the brook." 

" I thought so. These yellow violets usually grow in moist 
places, but are sometimes found in the woods." 

" What are these light blue ones with heart-shaped leaves ?" 

" Oh, that belongs to the same family as the first we looked 
at, the Viola cucullata. We shall find, as I told you, a good 
many shades, and I have seen white instead of yellow flowers 
on the Viola pubescens plant frequently; but I think it belongs 
to the same class as if the blossoms were yellow. Now, I 
want you to look at the roots a little. All of these have fi- 
brous roots. I think there is only one violet with a thick, 
tuberous root, and that is the Viola pedata. It has a peculiarly 
shaped leaf, and is called pedata from its resemblance to a 
bird's foot. You have none of those, I see, but you will get 
them. The roots of the Viola cucullata are smooth and white, 
with round-like stems. They are fibrous, of course, but still 
they have a regular shape, and differ decidedly in appearance 
from the roots of the Viola blanda, or white violet, which are 



64 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



all tangled up like little bunches of hair. These are the two 
different classes of fibrous roots, and there are all sorts of 
modifications between them. And now I think you will have 
just about time to put these nice specimens to press before 
Grandma calls us to dinner." 




CHAPTER X. 



DANDELIONS IMMORTELLES SPRING BEAUTY 




NE pleasant day, when the children 
had made a pilgrimage to the woods 
in search of some new specimens for 
their collection of floral treasures, they 
brought in a quantity of dandelions 
and everlasting, or, as Mamma called 
it, immortelle, and with them several 
fragile little pink flowers which they 
found in the meadow at the edge of the 
wood. These were so delicate that they 
seemed partially faded by their short journey, 
though they had been handled by Anna with unusual care. 
The flowers grew on a slender stem from between two lanceo- 
late-shaped leaves in a manner similar to the lilies-of-the- 
valley, and were a light pink in color, veined with five lines of 
dark red or purple. The two leaves, which seemed to be all 
the plant produced, were rather thick for so delicate a flower, 
and contained a great deal of juice. 

Mamma was as much interested as the children, for to her 
also the flower was a new one. 

5 



66 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

" Let us analyze it very carefully," she said. " This is 
really the first one we have had of which we did not know 
something to be°qn with." 

A close examination showed that each little flower had a 
calyx composed of but two sepals, that its five stamens were 
each attached to the base of a petal, and that its ovary con- 
tained but one cell. This, with its succulent or juicy leaves, 
made them trace it to the Purslane family, which contained 
only four divisions, the last of which, called Claytonia, seemed 
to fit the new flower. Its name was a-iven it in honor of 
John Clayton, an early Virginian botanist, and the children 
proved the specimen to be a Claytonia Virginica. Its common 
name is spring beauty ; and though found in Pennsylvania, 
it is more frequent along the northern boundaries of Virginia 
and Maryland. 

Having settled this, they turned their attention to the 
other flowers before them. 

"Oh, Mamma," said Charley, "when we were gather- 
ing them, a little girl from the little black house across 
the road from the meadow came down and stood at 
the fence and watched us, and she made fun of our 
flowers — that is, of the Dandelions — and said they were nasty 
weeds." 

" Yes, Mamma, these pretty soft yellow flowers," added 
Anna, indignantly. " To think of any one calling them 
weeds ! " 



DANDELIONS— IMMORTELLES—SPRING BEAUTY 67 



***? 






" I am afraid you will find a good many people out 
here who will do the same thing," said Mamma. " They 
have an unpleasant odor, and are so common it is no won- 
der people do not appreciate them. Grandpa will tell you 
what wonderful things they are to spread and cause trouble 
in both garden and farm. The flowers are pretty, though, 
and seem doubly so to you because you have not had them 
under your feet all your lives. Let 
us look at one through your glass, 
Anna. Get the focus right, so you 
can see it plainly. You will find that, 
instead of being just a single blos- 
som, each flower is a bunch composed ^>*V^ 
of nearly a thousand, and the y^ci 

green that surrounds them is — 
the involucre which belongs to 
all these flowers in common. Each 
little flower contains a separate seed. 
After the flower has blossomed, the 

involucre closes over it again until the seed is ripe, and when 
it opens again, it looks like a soft white ball, for every little 
seed has a silky stem attached, bearing several downy hairs. 
These seeds are very light indeed, and the wind blows them 
in every direction ; consequently the dandelions spring up in 
such numbers everywhere that I do not wonder people in the 
country find them a nuisance." 




DANDELION 



68 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



' I don't see how they can," said Anna, "when they are 
so pretty." 

" Men who are busy have no time to stop and admire 
them, even if they saw their beauty, which is not probable. 
Farmers grow so intent upon raising their crops, which are 

useful, that they are apt to look with dis- 
favor upon anything that interferes with 
that." 

" How lonof does it take the seed to 
ripen, Mamma?" asked- Charley. 

*' Oh, I do not know exactly, but not 
long. I suppose if some of those flowers 
had not been plucked, their seeds would 
have been ripe next week. I remember, 
when I was a little girl, I used to like to 
pick them when they were ripe, and blow 
the seeds away. We used to believe we 
could tell the time of day by the number of puffs it took to 
blow them all away." 

"What is the true name for dandelions?" asked Anna. 
" It is rather a long one, so perhaps you had better write 
it down. It is Taraxacum Dens-leonis. I do not know why 
it should be oriven that name, for I see nothing about it to 
suofSfest a lion's tooth, unless it be the irreofularlv notched 
leaves. 

" Does dens mean tooth. Mamma?" asked Charley. 




DANDELION WITH RIPENED 
SEED 



DANDELIONS— IMMORTELLES—SPRING BEAUTY 69 

" Yes ; our word dentist comes from it, and we have had it 
before in the dogtooth violet we analyzed a few days ago, 
whose full name is Dens-canis Erythronium. It will be easier 
for Anna to remember these names than you, because she 
knows a little Latin." 

"Are all botany names Latin, Mamma?" 

" No, not all, but most of them are. This Everlasting, or 
Immortelle, you have gathered has a Greek name, Gnapha- 
lium, which means a lock of wool. This is Gnaphalium 
polycephalum, or common everlasting. These leaves, you 
see, look very woolly. Now, the flowers of the immortelle, 
like the dandelion, are composed of tiny little flowerets, 
and there are a number of these in each little head, or 
flower." 

Grandma came in just then with some bright yellow 
flowers. "Here are some cowslips," she said. "We are 
going to have greens for dinner, and Hannah found that 
some in the bed had blossomed, and thought perhaps you'd 
like to find the Latin name for them." 

" Have them for dinner ? " said Charley. " Why, Grandma, 
you don't eat flowers, do you ?" 

" No, dearie, not the flowers ; but some plants are good 
to eat before the flowers come. After that they are tough. 
These flowers are earlier than usual; but, of course, we won't 
cook them." 

" Let us look at them a minute," said Mamma. " They 



70 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



are very pretty and bright. Charley, do you think you can 
tell to which family they belong?" 

Charley looked carefully at the leaves, steins, and flowers, 
and then said a little doubtfully, " The Crowfoot, I think, 
Mamma." 

" Quite right. You see we have found more flowers in 
that family than any other. But I am 
afraid we shall find this under some other 
name than cowslip, for the cowslip belongs 
to the Primrose family and is very dif- 
ferent. For example, it has only 
as many stamens as petals, and 
this flower, you see, has a large 
number of stamens bunched together 
in the centre. Cowslips generally 
grow from a raceme, or slender 
stem, while these flowers are arranged 
irregularly." 

Anna looked carefully over the 
divisions of the Crowfoot family, 
and then said, " You are right, Mamma, it is not cow- 
slip, but Marsh Marigold, and has been wrongly called 
cowslip in this country. Its right name is Caltha palus- 
tns. 

" Very well," said Grandma, " we're never too old to 
learn, you see ; but I think we've eaten ' cowslips ' so many 




RIGOLDS 



DANDELIONS— IMMORTELLES— SPRING BEAUTY 71 

years for greens, we shall be apt to forget to call them marsh 
marigolds now." 

*' It makes no difference what you call them, so long as 
they are good to eat," said Master Charley, who had great 
faith in Grandma's cookery. 

" Charley is quite right," said Mamma; "and I think we 
shall all be able to enjoy them at dinner time, even if a few 
flowers are lost by the plants being used for greens." 



CHAPTER XL 



BUTTERCUPS 



Y ! see what I've found," said 
Grandpa, coming in one day 
with a handful of bright yellow 
flowers. " Now I'm going to 
see who likes butter," and he 
held a blossom under May's dim- 
pled chin. 

" Oh, how can you tell with 
them?" asked Charley, coming 
forward to look. 

"Very easily, sir," answered Grand- 
pa. "Yes, indeed, Baby likes Grand- 
ma's butter, I can easily see that ; and so do you, young 
man," he added, as he transferred the flower to Charley's 
chin. 

" Of course I do. You can see that at the table," said 
Charley; "but, Grandpa, how can you tell?" 

" Oh, it won't do for me to tell flower secrets. I think, 
my boy, you and Mousie will not be long in finding out for 
yourselves ; and if you do not, perhaps your mother is not 




BUTTERCUPS 73 

so particular about keeping secrets as I am. Ladies never 
are, you know," and Grandpa cast a sly look at Mamma. 
" Here, I'll give you these to examine, and I guess you'll 
solve the mystery." 

But they did not try long, for, in answer to their question- 
ing glances, Mamma verified Grandpa's statement that ladies 
are not so particular to keep secrets — in this instance, at least 
— by saying, "These are Buttercups. You see how bright 
the petals are. Well, it is an old saying that if you reflect 
a yellow light from a buttercup upon any one's chin, that per- 
son is fond of butter." 

14 1 guess every one is, according to that," said Charley, 
playfully holding a flower to Anna's chin, while Baby May 
put the test to her dolly, with the same result. 

44 Yes, I think so; at least, I never knew a chin which 
failed to reflect the golden light." 

44 What is the correct name for buttercups, Mamma ? " 
asked Anna, who was always desirous of finding out all she 
could about any flowers with which she came in contact. 

44 One other name is Crowfoot, which, of course, tells their 
family, even if you did not know it at a glance. The name 
of the genus is Ranunculus, and you will find as many varie- 
ties as you did of violets, if not more. This is, I think, 
Ranunculus fascicular is, which is about the earliest of them. 
There is another, which I think you would find now, called 
wood buttercup, or Ranunculus Pennsylvania. It is also 



74 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

called bristly buttercup, because its leaves are downy. Char- 
ley, you may go down to the edge of the woods and see if 
you do not find some there, while Anna puts these between 
the boards." 

Anna brought the boards into the room, and while she 
straightened out the leaves, Mamma told a story to Baby 
May, which may be interesting to other little people. 

" Once upon a time there was a little girl whose name was 

Carrie. She lived alone with her mother in a small cottage 

<_> 

by a field, and they were very poor. The little girl had been 
ill for a long time, and though now she was able to be up, 
she was too weak to help her mother, as she wished to 
do. Her illness had cost a ereat deal, and now her mother 
had to work harder than ever to get money to pay for 
the doctor and the medicine, as well as to buy something 
to eat. 

" The field opposite them was covered with beautiful 
golden buttercups, and as Carrie sat looking out of the 
window one morning, wishing for the thousandth time she 
were able to make some money for her mother, she remem- 
bered that some one had said there was real gold in the 
buttercups. 

"'Just look, mother,' she said, 'there must be millions 
and millions of srold in all these flowers.' 

o 

" ' Perhaps so, dear, but I am afraid it is gold that we shall 
never get ;' and the widow sighed a little as she thought what 



BUTTERCUPS 75 

a very few of the ' millions and millions of gold ' it would 
take to lighten her burden. 

" After her mother had gone to her work, Carrie thought 
again of the gold, and how much her mother needed it, and 
finally decided to get some. So she started to the field and 
gathered a large quantity of the yellow flowers — so large, 
indeed, that she had to stop and rest several times before she 
could get them into the house, for the little girl was still very 
weak. 

" After a while, though, she had the supply in the little 
kitchen, and then she began to wonder how she was ' to get 
the gold.' She took some flowers and tore them to pieces, 
but in vain ; for among the scattered petals she couldn't 
find a trace of the precious metal. 

" Finally, a bright thought struck her. They had to use 
heat to prepare metals. She would put the flowers on and 
boil them, as her mother boiled the meat to get the strength 
into her beef tea when she was so ill. 

" So she put them into the kettle, and, taking her little 
pail, went twice to the spring for water to cover them. Then 
she made the fire and put them on to boil. They boiled and 
boiled for a long time, until finally Carrie decided that if 
there was any gold in them it would surely show now, so 
she lifted the kettle and with great difficulty carried it out to 
the porch. Then she lifted the lid and looked for the gold, 
but to her great disappointment there was none to be seen. 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

Only a kettle full of ugly stewed weeds, for even the pretty 
; e .low of the flov t r= ~" i e '.: s~. 

Poor little Carrie ! So this was the end of all her Work. 

It was too much for her, and the little girl dropped down on 

the porch and began to cry bitterly. Presently she heard a 

voice say Well, little girl, you seem to be in trouble. Stop 

ing, and tell me about it." 

"Carrie started up fearfully, for she was a timid little 
i'.r] she saw only a nice old gentleman, who spoke 

to her so kindly that she forgot to be afraid of him, and, after 
a little urging, she told him all about her disappointment. 

:/ said he, as she finished, " I see how it is. Gold, 
my dear, is he:/ : : ~ . G: into the 

house and get a large spoon, and perhaps we shall find some.' 

While Carrie did as he told her, his hand went into his 
pocket, and if any one had been near he might have heard a 
little spl; if something heavy had been dropped into 

the water. But there was no one in sight, except a little bird 
up in a tree, and he did not tell the secret, but only sang, 
z:::.:r.»; ':::':: '..-•: i:/it: tr.ir. tver w-tr. _ i-r.t ret . "" e : 
with the spoon. 

' The old gentleman took the spoon and dived down 
among the cooked-up flowers, and soon brought out two 
large gold pieces, which he gave to Carrie, and then went 
away, looking as happy as the little girl herself. 

" Vhen the mother returned that evening, she found a 



BUTTERCUPS 77 

very cheerful little girl waiting for her, and her tired face 
brightened as she saw the money and heard Carrie's story. 

"'Well, my dear,' she said, as Carrie finished, 'it was 
very good of you to work so hard to get the gold, but I am 
afraid if the kind gentleman had not come you would never 
have found it.' " 

By the time this story was told, Anna had finished arrang- 
ing her specimens, and Charley had arrived with the other 
one, which was as Mrs. Burton described it. 



CHAPTER XII. 



GROUND PINK RAM S HEAD BLUETS 



/^\NE day the children made an excursion to the hill where 
they had first found the arbutus, and this time they 
brought home a large number of new kinds of plants. Among 
them were several of the Viola Pedata, or bird's-foot violets, 
which they promptly recognized from the description Mamma 

had oqve-n them. 
<_> 

Then they found a large quantity 
of phlox-like flowers trailing all 
over the ground. The flowers varied 
in color from bright pink to purple, 
and most of them grew on stems 
three or four inches long, which were 
attached to lone stems or runners 
serving as roots, and the children 
pulled them up in strings several 
feet in length. The leaves were 
short and sharply lanceolate, and Anna rightly placed the new 
specimen in the Phlox family ; for upon examination it was 
found to be the Phlox stibulata, or ground pink. Grandma 
called it moss pink, and had a large bed of it in the back 




GROUND PINK 



GROUND PINK— RAM'S HEAD— BLUETS 79 

yard, but this did not blossom as early as in its native woods. 
Baby May greatly enjoyed playing with the long strings, and 
made wreaths for all her dollies. She tried to slip one over 
the head of Grandma's cat, but Tabby was a cross old cat and 
did not appreciate this attention. 

Anna and Charley also found by the fence some real cow- 
slips, which Anna recognized by their hairy leaves and bright 
little flowers. This kind is known as the Primula officilis and 
is very scarce in this country ; though a similar variety, but 
with large blossoms, is very plentiful in England. 

A small plant with a purple flower of peculiar shape they 
found to belong to the Orchid family under the name Cypri- 
pedium. This name comes from two Greek words — one sig- 
nifying Venus, the name of a Greek goddess, and the other, 
slipper — and was given to a variety of plants whose flowers 
were thought to resemble a lady's slipper. This particular 
flower is of a little different shape, and viewed in one way 
suggests a ram's head ; hence it is frequently known as Ram's 
Head. 

On a grassy slope, not far from the brook, they found a 
large number of dainty little blue flowers which grew so thick 
as to form a sort of sod over the ground, and the blossoms 
were very delicate in appearance. 

The little flowers were somewhat trumpet-shaped, with 
the top of the corolla divided into four petals, which are 
blue at the tips and shade towards a creamy yellow at the 



80 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 




BLUETS 



centre. Anna made the mistake of calling them forget-me- 
nots at first; but Grandpa, whom they met in the field on 

their way home, said they were Bluets, and 
that some children called them Quaker 
ladies, and Mamma promptly classified 
them as Housto?iza cczrulea. 

Besides these, there was one for which, 
after careful examination, the children failed 
to find a name. It had two little bell- 
shaped flowers, light purple in color, at 
the top of a slender stem. They had a 
faint, sweet odor, and the leaves were round 
and very slightly 
serrate, or toothed. They carried 
it to Mamma, who, after a little ex- 
amination, said, " This must be the 
Twin Flower. I have never seen 
it before, and it is not common 
here. It usually grows in a colder 
climate, and its botanical name 
is Linncea borealis. There is only 
the one species of it, and it was 
named in honor of Linnaeus." 
"Who was he, Mamma?" 

" He was one of the greatest botanists we have ever 
had. I believe he was a Swede, though he took his degree 




TWIN FLOWER 






GROUND PINK— RAM'S HEAD— BLUETS 81 

from a Holland university. His fame became world-wide. 
He studied the plants of almost all countries, and probably 
did more towards systematizing and classifying them than 
any other one man. When you go home, you will probably 
find a biography of him in the library, which I think Charley 
will find interesting also. And now I think we must all 
help to get these new specimens in order." 



CHAPTER XIII. 



APPLE BLOSSOMS WILD GERANIUM COLUMBINE 

rHE apple trees were now in blossom, and Charley 
brought in a large cluster for Mamma to admire. 
11 Aren't thev sweet, Mamma ? " he said. " I like to 
look at apple blossoms because they are such pleasant-looking 

flowers. Don't they make 
you think of faces smiling 
at you ? " 

" That is a very pretty 
conceit for my boy," said 
Mamma, "and I think 
his adjective is right. 
They are pleasant-look- 
ing. . How prettily the 
pink and white are blended in these ! What a good study 
this spray would make for an artist ! " 
*' Shall we analyze them, Mamma?" 

11 Certainly, if you wish ; but as we know so well what 
they are, it is hardly necessary. I think, with Anna's help, 
you can trace them readily from the beginning." 




APPLE BLOSSOMS 



APPLE BLOSSOMS— WILD GERANIUM— COLUMBINE 83 

Charley did so, and was very much surprised at finding 
them in the Rose family. 

" Why, Mamma, apple trees are not roses, are they ?" 
" Yes and no. You may not find any resemblance at first, 
and yet I think if you compare an apple blossom with a single 
wild rose, you will find they are alike in many respects. Then 
if you observe the leaves of both, you will see that while 
apple leaves are simple, and rose leaves compound, they have 
some points of resemblance. Both are alternate in their 
arrangement and both have very decided stipules at the 
base of the petiole, or leaf-stalk. 

''The petals of the flower, you know, are wholly separate, 
and in a few days they will fall, making the ground under the 
trees white. The calyx is superior to the ovary ; that is, the 
ovary is beneath it. The ovary, you know, is the fruit of the 
apple, and it grows larger and larger under the calyx until it 
is full grown. You can always see the calyx — though it is 
sometimes called the blossom — on the top of every ripe 
apple. Have you noticed it?" 

" Yes, Mamma, but I never knew before what it was." 
" No, but you will know now. I remember, when I was a 
little girl, I thought it was some kind of a bug, and was afraid 
of it until Grandma told me about it. The leaves are hardly 
out yet, but when they are, you will see that they are penni- 
veined, serrate-edged, oval in form, with an acute point, 
and underneath they are cottony or woolly. The botanical 



84 



SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 



name for the common apple is Pyrus Malus, but I dare say 
Grandpa can tell you another name for each of the differ- 
ent varieties." 

One afternoon Grandpa brought a pretty plant from the 

fields. It had a light pinkish-pur- 
ple corolla composed of five petals, 
and only one pistil, which was long 
and of a peculiar hooked shape. 
On account of this latter, botanists 
have called it cranesbill ; but 
Grandpa called it Wild Geranium, 
and Anna found it in the Geranium 
family under the title Geranium 
maculatum. 

That same evening Charley 
went with Abner for the cows, 
and in a swamp on the way he found quite a number of new 
plants. Among them was one that looked like a close tuft 
of grass, though it bore little blue flowers. He took some 
home to press, and Anna, who by this time had become 
quite expert in analyzing, promptly pronounced it Blue-eyed 
Grass or Sisyrinchiimi Burmudiana. 

Another flower which made a particularly attractive 
specimen was the Columbine. Anna had been espe- 
cially anxious to have this, because one of her teachers 
had once read an article to her class showing the reasons 




WILD GERANIUM 



APPLE BLOSSOMS— WILD GERANIUM— COLUMBINE 85 



why this little flower should be considered our national 
flower. 

"You see, Charley," she said, "it would really be a 
good emblem for us, because it can be 
found in every State in the Union, and 
comes in red, white and blue, our na- 
tional colors." 

" Yes, but we have nothing but red 
here," said Charley. 

" Red is the only color that grows 
wild in the Eastern States, Miss Black 
said ; but Grandma has the white and 
blue in her yard, and the plant is exactly 
the same. You see what odd shapes the 
petals and sepals have. People used 
to think it resembled a bird, and some one a long time ago 
thought it resembled an eagle, so it was called Aquilegia\ 
which is taken from the Latin word for eagle. So you see in 
its botanical name we have our national bird." 

Charley was very much interested, and so was Baby May, 
when Mamma showed them how the little sacs held honey 
at the bottom, which the bees found it very hard work to 
reach. 




COLUMBINE 



CHAPTER XIV. 



JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT WILD LADY S SLIPPER 



PHAT evening everybody was at work in the kitchen, 
preparing and arranging the specimens. Even Abrter, 
the hired man, had become interested in the work of the 
little people, for Anna and Charley, despite 
their little faults, were sweet-tempered, well- 
trained children, who made friends of 
all who came in contact with them. 

Charley had angered him at first 
with his boyish mischief, but had 
apologized so heartily when he saw the 
trouble he had caused, that Abner's heart 
softened towards him, and they became firm 
friends. In consequence of this, the children 
had several specimens that grow in woodland 
places where they were not allowed to go 
alone. Two such were added to the collec- 
tion that evening. 
One the children knew, from frequent pictures, to be the 
Jack-in-the-Pulpit, or Indian turnip. Its botanical name was 
found to be Arisczma triphyllurn. The other, after analysis, 




JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT 



JACK-IN-THE PULPIT— WILD LADY'S SLIPPER 87 



was found to be the Lady's Slipper, or Moccasin plant, 
which belongs in the Orchid family. This was a very hand- 
some plant. The peculiarly shaped flower, which Anna had 
at first thought must be the pitcher plant, because its cup 
contained drops of water, was a bright pink, 
handsomely striped with dark lines ; and the 
sepals, as the colored lanceolate leaves at 
the top proved to be, were deep purple in 
color. Its technical name is Cypripedium 
spectdbile, and it is a member of the same 
family as the little ram's head, which the 
children had found earlier in the season. 

While they were busily engaged in arrang- 
ing their specimens on the kitchen table, the 
door opened, and in stepped Papa Burton, 
who had become so homesick for his little 
people that he said he could not exist any 
longer without a sight of them, even though 
his visit must be a short one. In the joy of 
welcoming him, even the specimens were for- 
gotten for a time, until he called their attention to them 
by asking what had been done to promote the science of 
botany. 

The next morning, when Charley brought some new 
flowers which had just opened, his father had a chance to 
hear a lesson in analysis, which pleased him so much that he 




LADY S SLIPPER 



88 SPRINGTIME FLOWERS 

decided that Charley, too, deserved a herbarium to preserve 
his share of the specimens which had been so carefully 
collected. 

Anna had received a number of invitations to attend the 
school commencement, which was now near at hand. When 
Papa saw how rosy and bright she looked, he decided that 
she might safely return to school in time to pass two or 
three of her examinations, which w r ould help her greatly in 
the fall. 

So, a week later, Anna set out for a few days in the city, 
taking her herbarium, to show her teacher that her spring 
vacation had been put to some use. 






■,-•< 



^^ 



tore 



GLOSSARY 



Acuminate \ tapering at the end. 

Acute, sharp-pointed. 

Analyze, to separate a plant into its 

parts for examination and study. 
Amiuals, plants which complete their 

growth in a year; that is, they flower, 

bear fruit, and die the same year they 

are raised from the seed. 
Anther, the part of the stamen which 

contains the pollen. 

Biennials, plants which require two 
years to complete their growth; that 
is, they spring from the seed one 
year, but do not flower and bear fruit 
until the next. 

Botanical, relating or pertaining to 
plants. 

Botanize, to collect plants for study and 
examination. 

Bristly, furnished with bristles or short, 
stiff hairs. 

Calyx, the outer set of the leaves which 
compose the floral envelope or peri- 
anth. 

Classify, to arrange in sets or classes ac- 
cording to some distinctive properties. 

Cleft, cut into lobes. 

Conical, shaped like a cone. 

Corolla, the inner set of leaves com- 
posing the" floral envelope. 



Cotyledons, the first leaves of the em- 
bryo. 

Cryptogamous, relating to flowerless 
plants. 

Cryptogams, plants which do not bear 
flowers. 

Cultivate, to improve the natural condi- 
tions of a plant by labor and fertili- 
zation. 

Dicotyledonous, having a pair of coty- 
ledons. 

Digitate, referring to that class of com- 
pound leaves in which all the leaflets 
are set at the apex of the leafstalk 
and stand out like the fingers of the 
hand. 

Downy, having soft hairs or down. 

Embryo, the rudimentary plant in the 
seed. 

Endogenous, that class of plants whose 
stems increase their growth without 
showing circles, pith, or bark. 

Exogenous, outward growing ; that 
class of plants whose stems are com- 
posed of layers around a central 
pith. 

Fibrous, composed of or containing 

slender threads or fibers. 
Filainent, the stalk of the stamen. 



90 



GLOSSARY 



Foliage, the leaves of a plant in general. 
Fragile, very slender or delicate. 

Genus, a kind of rank above species in 
flowers. 

Herbarium, a. classified collection of 
dried plants. 

Imbricated, overlapping one another. 
Inferior, lower or beneath. 
Involucre, a whorl or set of leaves 

surrounding a flower or cluster of 

flowers. 

Lanceolate, lance-shaped. 
Lateral, belonging to the sides. 

Medicinal, possessing curative or heal- 
ing properties. 

Monocotyledonous, having only one 
cotyledon. 

Mucilagi?ious, having a mucilage-like 
quality or property. 

Native, belonging to, or the product of, 
a certain locality. 

Ovary, that part of the pistil w r hich 
contains the seed. 

Palmate, a leaf with divisions spread 
out from the centre like a hand with 
outstretched fingers. 

Panicle, an open or branched cluster 
of flowers. 

Parallel, running in the same direc- 
tion. 

Perianth, the complete floral envelope, 
consisting of both calyx and corolla. 



Petal, a leaf of the corolla. 

Petiole, the footstalk of a leaf. 

Phanerogamous , flower producing. 

Phanerogams, plants which bear 
flowers. 

Pistil, the seed-bearing organ of a 
plant. 

Pith, the soft cell-like centre in exogen- 
ous plants. 

Plumule, the bud or first shoot of a 
plant, between the cotyledons. 

Pubes, small soft hairs. 

Pubescent, hairy, or covered with down- 
like hairs. 

Raceme, a flower cluster with one- 
flowered stalks arranged around the 
sides of a general stem. 

Radiate-veined, with veins running out- 
ward from the centre. 

Radical, belonging to, or coming from, 
the root. 

Runner, a slender stem, generally lying 
prostrate, with roots at the ends of 
joints. 

Scape, 2l flower stalk rising directly 
from the ground, as in the common 
blue violet. 

Sepals, the leaves or divisions of the 
calyx. 

Serrate, with the edges or margin cut 
into teeth. 

Specimen, a single plant preserved to 
represent a certain class or family. 

Spore, a minute body resulting from the 
fructification of cryptogams, answer- 
ing to the purpose of seed. 

Spur, an appendage from a flower, re- 
sembling a spur in appearance, but 



GLOSSARY 



91 



hollow like a sac, as found in the 

violet. 
Stamen, the organ in a plant which 

produces and dispenses the pollen. 
Stigma, the end of the pistil which re- 
ceives the pollen. 
Stipule, the appendage at the base of 

the leafstalk. 
Style, the stalk between the ovary 

and the stigma in the pistil of a 

plant. 



Torus, the receptacle of the flower, at 

the end of the stem. 
Tuber, a thickened portion of root, with 

eyes or buds at the sides. 
Tuberous, producing tubers at the root. 

Vegetable, belonging to, or pertaining 
to, plants. 

Whorl, an arrangement of leaves in 
circles or clusters. 



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